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Hecht, Kleeger & Damashek: The Midtown Boutique Whose Partners Left New York’s Biggest Injury Firms to Take Fewer Cases

The three name partners of Hecht, Kleeger & Damashek all came from among the largest and most profitable personal injury firms in New York — and left, by their own account, to build a boutique that takes fewer cases and gives each one more attention, while still recovering over $825 million.

Origin and Background

Hecht, Kleeger & Damashek, P.C. practices from 19 West 44th Street, Suite 1500, in Midtown Manhattan, confirmed through the firm’s own site, Martindale-Hubbell, and its BBB profile. The firm states it was started in 1999. Partner Jordan Hecht earned his J.D. from Cardozo School of Law in 1994, gaining his first courtroom experience in the Manhattan District Attorney’s office, and the partnership’s combined experience exceeds 75 years. Partners Judd Kleeger and Jonathan Damashek round out the named leadership.

Practice Concentration

The firm’s practice is exclusively plaintiff-side personal injury: construction accidents, car and truck accidents, MTA and subway accidents, pedestrian injuries, premises liability, municipal liability, brain and spinal injuries, and wrongful death, serving all five boroughs. See this New York Personal Injury directory for how this deliberately boutique-sized trial practice compares to the city’s largest volume firms.

Notable Work / Track Record

The firm reports over $825 million recovered in verdicts and settlements, including more than $150 million in a recent twelve-year span. These figures are the firm’s own reported totals. Past results do not guarantee similar outcomes.

Client Voice

Published client reviews describe partner-level attention through the life of a case; one client wrote of Jonathan Damashek that the favorable outcome was owed to his “consummate and tireless dedication and tenacity.” The firm is BBB-accredited, committing to the BBB’s Standards for Trust.

Beyond the Courtroom

Firm attorneys are involved with the New York State Trial Lawyers Association among other professional organizations.

Recognition for This New York Personal Injury Firm

The firm holds membership in the Million Dollar Advocates Forum and has been recognized in Best Lawyers’ peer-review rankings among top New York firms — credentials distinct from paid marketing placements. New York State does not operate a state-run attorney specialization certification program, so Awesome Attorneys does not apply “specialist” language to any New York profile on a state-certification basis.

New York Legal Backdrop

Most New York injury claims carry a three-year statute of limitations under CPLR 214(5), and claims against the City or agencies like the MTA — a recurring case type at this firm — generally require a notice of claim within 90 days under General Municipal Law Section 50-e. Auto-accident victims must clear the “serious injury” threshold of Insurance Law Section 5102(d) before suing for pain and suffering under New York’s no-fault system. New York applies pure comparative negligence under CPLR 1411. None of this is legal advice; a specific injury claim should be evaluated by a licensed New York attorney based on the actual facts involved.

Awesome Attorneys Assessment

Hecht, Kleeger & Damashek’s clearest differentiator is a deliberate structural choice: big-firm-trained partners running a boutique caseload, with an $825 million recovery record that suggests the model has not cost them severity. The honest trade-off is that the firm’s headline figures are self-reported rather than compiled by a third-party service like VerdictSearch, and a smaller firm’s capacity means genuinely selective intake. For a seriously injured New Yorker who wants named-partner attention on a construction, municipal, or catastrophic injury claim without engaging one of the city’s largest operations, this firm is a natural shortlist entry.

Methodology and Sourcing

This profile was researched from Hecht, Kleeger & Damashek’s own site, its Martindale-Hubbell and BBB profiles, and its published client reviews and recognitions.

Publisher Disclosure and Independence Notice

Awesome Attorneys is an independent legal directory and editorial publication. This profile was not paid for, commissioned, or reviewed by Hecht, Kleeger & Damashek, P.C. prior to publication. Awesome Attorneys may in the future offer sponsored placement products to attorneys and firms, including this one, but sponsorship has no bearing on the editorial content, inclusion, or findings of this profile.